Expert: John Oliverio - 6/26/2007

Question
Dear Sir,
    I am an avid photobug, and have mastered the Sony H5.  For a graduation present, I was given a giftcard of a substantial amount to the Applestore, which sells the aforementioned Canon model.  I do not have a ton of experience with DSLRs, although I'm not a complete novice, either.  While the Canon model is aces compared to the Sony, the sony does have wicked zoom- 12x optical.
My question is, if I upgrade to the Canon, am I going to have to spend tons of mula to get to the zoom I am acustomed to?
I primarily shoot at sporting events, and thus could really use the manual 5fps the Canon offers.  If I can do this with the packaged 18-55mm lens that comes with it, that would be even better.

Thanks so much, and I can't believe you guys do this for free. :)

Jack Hazard

Answer
Jack,
You've got a great last name.
If you want to get up to where the Sony reaches to, you'll need to get a tele-photo.  You can get the regular 75-300 for about $150.  For the record, the difference in image quality is well worth the upgrade.  Also, I would put an upgrade for the 18-55 on my Christmas list if I was you.  The 17-85 is a much better performer.  The lens is the most important part of the camera and they are basically giving that 18-55 away.

John